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He was present at the signing of the
armistice on July 27, 1953, which
terminated three years of bitter and
destructive fighting. However, his
signature is to be found nowhere on
the treaty. South Korea, preferring
to fight on to victory but overruled
by tbe United States,
wa~
not a
pa.rty to the cease-fire.
No one knows more than Mr.
Paik that nothing substantial has
changed in the relationship between
the two Koreas since the armistice
of 24 years ago. The overriding aim
of North Korea's dictator Kim 11-
sung- who has been the Pyongyang
govemment's head of state through–
out its 32-year existence- is to com–
munize the South by force of arms,
hopefully in his lifetime. To Kim ,
the war of 1950-53 was merely a
round-one standotf. The final round
with his intended knockout blow is
yet to come.
Yet with the V.S.
~econd
lnfantry
Division positioned astride two val–
leys leading to the South Korean
capital of Seoul, which lies a scant
30 miles south of the border, the
North Koreans would have to fight
their way past American soldiers
during the initial attack. The frus–
trated Mr. Kim has not risked in–
viting an all-out retaliation from the
U.S. military. Thus, for nearly a
quarter century, the strategically
placed "trip-wire" U.S. groun.d
forces have prevented a second Ko–
rean War from taking place. Little
wonder dictator Kim has demanded
repeatedly since 1953 that U.S.
ground forces leave South Korea.
Booming Economy
While nothing has changed in the
political relationships between the
two Korean states, the same can't be
said for their interna! economic con–
ditions. During our recent visit to
the Republic, we were amazed at
the furious pace of nation-building.
In Seoul, despite that city's pre–
carious location, high-rise office
buildings and luxury hotels are
springing skyward. Traffic jams are
becoming increasingly common as
more and more automobiles take to
the streets. Subway and bighway
construction further add to the con–
gestion. International bankers and
foreign businessmen move through
the country in bordes.
8
NORTH AND SOUTH
Korean soldiers
eye each other at Panmunjom.
Looking at the country today. it is
difficult to realize that 24 years ago
the Repubbc of Korea lay in near–
total devastation, numb from three
years of warfare against Chinese–
supported North Korean invaders.
But following the bloodless military
coup staged by General (now Presi–
dent) Park Chung-hee in May 1961,
South Korean industrialization for–
ged aheacljn earnest. The results in
the years since have been nothing
less than spectacular.
Though South Korea is a nation
poor in natural resources, its hard–
working citizens are determined to
catch up economically with their
chief rivals in free Asia, the pros–
perous Japanese. "Our
human
re–
sources -ar ab·tmdant and well
educated," Tae ·wan-son, president
of the Korea Chamber of Com–
merce and Industry, told us. "This is
our wealth.''
Mr. Tae, a former economic-plan-
The authors recently re·
turned from a three-week,
six-nation fact-finding trip in
Asia. This is the second re·
port in their series on current
conditions in that part of the
world.
ning mm1ster, oullined to us in a
one-hour interview the current eco–
nomic state of atfairs of South Ko–
rea. Per capita GNP now sta nds at
over $700, up dramatically from a
mere $83 in 1961. By 1981 it is ex–
pected to hit $1500. South Korean
exports have increased over 200
times since 1961 , now standing at
over $10 billion. Total trade is twice
tha t figure. By 1980, ex'ports alone
are expected to reach the $20 billion
mark. This year's target growth rate
is ten percent, but it will probably
be higher.
I n stark contrast, Commu nist
North Korea ' s economy is a
shambles. lts GNP- $6 billion in
1976- is barely one-fourth that of
the South. I ts economic perfor–
mance is so poor that its diplomats
in Europe have reportedly been re–
duced to trading in black-market
drugs and cigarettes. The North is
intensely jealous of South Korea 's
success-adding to
Kim
Il-sung's
compulsive obsession to communize
the South by force of arms.
Putting "Human Rights"
in Perspective
Mr. Tae assured us the U.S. ground
forces are stiU necessary to
deter
war
launched by the North Koreans-a
war which, even if won, could set
the Republic's hard-earned prosper–
ity back many years. And the s urest
way
tt>
deter war is to leave the
American troops right where they
are. "They make Kim think twice,"
he said. South Korea, he added, is
one of the few natioos that has said
"Yankee welcome" rather than
"Yankee go home."
Mr. Tae said Americans obvi–
ously find it difficult to understand
the precarious position the Republic
of Korea is in, and has been in, for
27 years. "Korea is still in the stage
of
protecting
freedom, nol enjoying
it as you are in America," he said.
''Y
ou have no Communist enemy
directly facing you, say, in Canada,"
he reminded us.
One National Assemblyman we
talked to drew a similar parallel: "lf
Communists took over one-half of
the United States- up to the Missis–
sippi River, for example- do you
think the other half could maintain
its present type of democracy?"
(Continued on page 10)
The
PLAIN TRUTH December 1977